Older uni hopefuls lead the field

School leavers faced stiff competition for university places from older applicants, who received nearly half of yesterday's more than 46,000 main round offers.

The number of university applications from non-school leavers at the University Admissions Centre has risen almost 80 per cent in the past three years. On current trends, Higher School Certificate students applying to go to university will be in the minority next year, according to admissions centre figures.

The chief executive of the Australian Vice-Chancellors' Committee, John Mullarvey, said it was "no surprise that people are coming back to study . . . it increases their employability".

"World knowledge - research and breakthroughs - doubles every seven years, so it makes sense for people to come back to study, whether it's for their first degree, or to finish a degree they started, or to gain postgraduate qualifications."

More than 35,000 non-school leavers applied for study this year, compared with fewer than 20,000 in 2001. In contrast, the number of HSC students applying over that time rose from about 40,000 to less than 43,000 - an increase of less than 8 per cent.

Kevin Bradley, 40, will return to studying this year when he undertakes a Bachelor of Arts in architecture at the University of Technology, Sydney.

He has worked for 20 years in drafting and engineering.

Mr Bradley said he had long considered a return to student life - "It just took me a while for the heart and brain to head in the right direction" - and had no qualms about competing with school leavers.

"It comes down to the universities making the decision, and it's all merit based . . . I've put a lot time into the industry already, so I feel like I've earned the spot."

The assistant registrar of undergraduate studies at Macquarie University, Ron Kendall, said that although school leavers and non school leavers competed for positions, institutions always "fine tuned" the mix.